I've recorded a lot of drone footage in the course of building ConnectHV. You can use this footage for free, under the CC0 license, for whatever you want — personal or commercial.
Why release this footage for free?
I love aerial footage, and when I started ConnectHV I found it a very painful process to find good drone footage of the Hudson Valley at a reasonable price. Now that I have this footage, I'd love to see it go to good use supporting other creators and small businesses who'd benefit from solid B-roll of the Hudson Valley.
What can I use this footage for?
Anything you want, personal or commercial. I shot most of the footage as B-roll social media content for ConnectHV, so it's ideal for cases when you need generic footage of the Hudson Valley to roll in the background, but you can do whatever you want with it.
Is this footage safe to use?
Yes! All this footage was taken under the FAA's Part 107 rules by a licensed commercial drone operator (me), and it's licensed under the CC0 license, which places it effectively in the public domain. You can use it for anything you want without permission or attribution.
Will this take money away from local drone operators?
Great question! The answer is no, not really. Most professional drone operators make money by selling their services to clients — that means things like agricultural surveys, roof inspections, and aerial photography of specific properties for things like real estate listings. Drone operators typically don't making significant income by selling stock footage, and there's little financial incentive for commercial drone operators to go around collecting generic footage of the Hudson River itself.
My hope with this footage is twofold:
Increase the quality of social media content that Hudson Valley creators and busineses can produce by increaseing the availability of high-quality, royalty-free drone footage of the Hudson Valley
Show local businesses how well-performing drone footage can be, so they start considering hiring drone operators for more specific projects, and therefore boost the drone industry in the Hudson Valley
I need some specific drone footage that isn't here. How can I get it?
There are exceptional drone photographers and operators in the Hudson Valley, including many who are part of the ConnectHV community. If you need something specific, such as aerial shots of your business or property, reach out to any of them!